Why I want Nike, Puma and Adidas to sell single shoes

Stef Reid grew up as an obsessed child by dreaming of playing rugby internationally. But on the eve of his 16th birthday, his life changed forever.

The severe propeller tearing from a terrible boat accident left doctors who had no choice but to cut off their right foot.

He initially continued to follow Rugby, but his agility and speed was not the same, and he was tired of comparing his performance with both feet.

“I didn’t want to give up my goal because I was just an amputee, but life is constantly changing and we should update our goals to work in a reality that no longer exist, or he says.

That’s why he passed Rugbyid and took athletics. Using a light, stringed carbon fiber knife on the right leg, it was a world champion paralympic long jumper and sprinter for both Canada and Great Britain – winning medals, breaking records and getting a MBE.

He has now retired from professional sport, but has shown a similar adaptability and flexibility, including acting, modeling and broadcasting, including dancing on ICE in his new career.

Now he is carrying out a campaign for large brands such as Nike, Adidas and Puma to sell single shoes instead of couples.

Partially about cost – high -level running shoes needed about £ 200 and only one needed one when competing, but he had to buy two, so hundreds of pounds was wasted on shoes he never worn.

But his biggest motivation is the principle. Most of the big brands proudly exhibit models with knives in their stores, but don’t sell shoes for athletes like Stef.

“I liked the Bladed models, and I wish 15 -year -old Stef had seen them.

“But now I want retailers to match their inclusive images with real purchasing experience”.

Stef is not alone. While wearing two shoes with a daily prosthesis, many other amputtes do not.

And beyond disability, thousands of people with different sizes of feet are influenced by taking two shoes of the same size instead of two singles.

Nike launched a single shoe program last year and allowed customers to buy a shoe for half the price of certain stores. However, this is not clearly announced, requires the customer to communicate with the maintenance support team and is not available online.

When the STEF raised the problem, the plan was not pointed out, but rather offered a 15% discount for one time. “This is not used much in the long run because I will always be a foot”.

Adidas, who equipped the British Paralympic team, does not sell single shoes online. However, they say that it is possible to buy a single shoe in some stores depending on stocks. The company added that concluding a comprehensive policy is “in the developed stages”.

In the meantime, Puma does not sell any single shoes in the store or online and did not respond to a request for a comment like Decathlon.

While Nike and Adidas take positive steps to address the problem, Stef thinks that sports brands should sell single shoes in all shops and online as a standard application.

Some small businesses and base organizations prove that this is possible.

High Street shoe company Schuh sells single shoes for half of a couple, while the shoe chain office allows you to buy strange -sized shoes through outlet sites.

And then there are small -scale shoes that lose your right leg to complex regional pain syndrome, such as Jo’s Odd Shoes, founded by Jo O’Callaghan.

The situation makes wearing a prosthetic limb very painful and leaves it like many amputtes, it needs only one pair of shoes.

He established a Facebook group where members can change or donate spare shoes. Many retailers donate shoes to the plan.

In addition to a small fee for mail and packaging, the products are free for members.

Air Sport is a service that Jack Pimblett uses.

He was born with Talipes or Club Foot, which prevented the growth of his right foot and leg, and struggled to find two well -fitting shoes when he was younger.

To fill the extra area, he often had to put cotton wool on his shoes.

As an adult, it manages a combination of young and adult shoe sizes – a 5 -dimensional right shoe and a left shoe of 7 sizes.

However, this brings a significant financial coercion that Jack typically spends about £ 150 for two pairs of shoes.

“It would be nice to buy suitable shoes … [without] He pays twice, “he says.

Stef acknowledges that the change he is looking for is taking time and money, but he calls out to push companies forward.

“All you need is the first step in the right direction, or he says.

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